Super strength booze binned
by Hammersmith and Fulham Press Office
27/01/2009
Five off-licences have been told they must stop selling strong cheap booze in a crackdown on street drinking.
The shops – Best Wines, Langani Superstore, Seven Up, Fairway Foods and London News – all on Shepherds Bush Road were ordered by Hammersmith & Fulham Council’s licensing sub-committee on Thursday January 22 to stop selling beer, lager or cider with an alcohol content of 5.5 per cent or more. One particular brand of cider called White Ace with an alcohol content of 7.5 per cent was selling for as little as 60 pence a can.
The ban on selling these types of drinks will begin in February, 21 days after the decision was made, and came about following applications from two primary schools, Addison Primary and Lena Gardens, for the council to review each of the five shops’ licences.
In a joint statement, Calum Fairley, head teacher of Lena Gardens, and Clare Pugh, deputy head teacher of Addison Primary School, said they had become concerned about the safety of the schools’ pupils and their parents. They said: “We at the schools have become concerned for our children and their parents, as they make their way into school in the mornings and home in the evenings, from the presence of street drinkers outside the Shepherds Bush Road, attracted to the area by the cheap alcohol provided by off-licences, of which there are many.”
Their concerns were backed by local police teams and more than 30 residents who sent letters of support for the schools to the council.
Inspector Chris Wood, of Fulham Police, said that problems caused by street drinking had a ‘detrimental impact’ on two of the four licensing objectives that must be proved – prevention of crime and disorder and the protection of children from harm.
“These high strength alcoholic drinks are often bought and consumed by individuals who have problems with alcohol abuse,” he said. “The consumption by these people creates anxiety amongst community members, thus affecting the quality of life for local residents and generating an increased demand on police resources.”
James Johnstone, who lives at Melrose Gardens, sent photos to the licensing committee showing men urinating outside his house. He said arguments between groups of drunks were a daily occurrence on his street and that his six-year-old daughter had been distressed on several occasions.
Mr Johnstone said: “We are trying to stop Hammersmith & Fulham being known as the borough that has the highest alcohol-related deaths in London and this is a great success on a local level.
“I am pleased at the result and as residents, we are delighted. My six-year-old daughter has seen men exposing themselves by urinating openly in the street but I now hope that our children will not be subjected to abusive behaviour from drunks in the area.”
Josephine Saunders, of Batoum Gardens, also supported Lena Gardens and Addison Primary School. She said: “I have seen people under the influence buying what appears to be cheap drink in the shops on Shepherds Bush Road. It is very unpleasant to then witness them drinking it on the street corners and in Loris Gardens which they also use as a public lavatory.”
An extra condition was added to the licences of all the shops, which does not allow alcohol to be sold before 11am in the morning.
Councillor Greg Smith, cabinet member for crime and street scene, sits on the licensing sub-committee. He said: “Street drinking in this part of the borough is a problem and this is an important victory for decent residents whose lives have been affected by drunks who cannot control their behaviour.
“We have already made Hammersmith & Fulham a controlled drinking zone and will continue to stand up for the silent majority of our residents wherever we can.”
